The Loyal

Friday, March 11, 2011

There are several reasons to complain about it, but what is Black Ops really. Fan boys and girls everywhere will either say they love it or hate it, but what about an unbiased opinion about the game? Luckily I am here to tell you exactly what you are in for IF you haven't played this yet. Here we goooo.

CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS

Gameplay
It's a shooter. If you want to know how the mechanics works, play any shooter ever. They are pretty much all the same. One nice feature that this game did add, however, is the ability to dive in mid sprint. Yes, that is correct, you can now relive your favorite action movie scene by jumping out of a window and mowing down your opponent with some hot videogame lead. Knifing remains the same as other Call of Dutys. In other words you will still have times when you are like "wtf, why didn't I hit?" or ever occurring "HOW THE FUCK DID THAT EVEN HIT ME" kill cam. There is one complaint I have and that is in multiplayer, if you duck behind a wall and are pressing on it, sometimes other opponents can see you and actually shoot you! Yikes. Since I discussed the gameplay, next step would be talking about the single player campaign.

Edit: The main menu of this game is so bad ass. I am a sucker for interactive menus though. If you don't know what I mean by that tap aim and shoot repeatedly and check it out. (type DOA or zork on the computer...I dare you)

Solo play
Like the last few call of duties since the Modern Warefare jump, The story is action packed and tends to fuck up the facts of what actually happened. But who cares, this story mode is one of my favorites for any shooter...ever. Top 25 I'd say. You alternate through different characters during the story, but most of the time you are playing as a dude named James Mason. There are plenty of explosions and a couple of good songs in this game. All and all I have to give the story a B-. It was not the most moving thing, at times I got frustrated because of the odds against you (i.e. 3 man group vs a whole army and all you have is a shotgun. Boned) Despite that though, There are TONS of explosions. So many you may think Michael Bay directed the game.

But I mean what warm blooded American male doesn't like explosions? If your answer is you I must ask you, Are you gay? If your answer was no, you may want to check again.

Multi play
Here is where things get sketchy. As much fun as I had playing Call of Duty online, there were aspects that made me furious. One aspect was people pulling out the plug when they were about to lose. I mean, are some people so worried about their kill to death ratio that they would actually do this? I mean it pisses me off when you can't get more than 5 mins of play time because some dumb ass pulls the plug. Accept a loss and don't be a bitch.

*straightens tie* In other news, The perks in this game are pretty off the hook. They all do something worth having. Some are clearly better than others though. Such as Ghost, Scavenger, (the over used) second chance, and others. Also returning to multiplayer is Pro perks which allow your perks to somewhat evolve. For example, If you have scavenger pro, you start a map with more ammo and the ability to replenish your secondary grenades.

OH YEAH, there are a ton of great guns in this game. Personal favorite is a FAMAS with s flame thrower attachment. Hooah.

Oh yeah, the new care packages are rape. But if someone gets enough kills without dying to get one, they deserve them.

Maps
The maps in this game itself were not diverse enough. It felt like the Sniper rifle was a completely useless weapon up until their first map pack. Sure, there were a few levels, but it didn't feel like you could really Snipe except for mid to short range. Once the new map pack hit, it kind of targeted snipers I feel like. I do love all the maps in this game though. I feel they are all fun but could use a few more hiding place. Battlefield has better maps by far though (and fully destructible environments)

All and All
Black Ops is a solid shooter and I don't really see what all the complaints are about. Sure there are a few things to complain about and nothing has really changed. So I give this game a 7.1 out of 10. Online is addictive though. Back to it!

I would post pictures for this review but I am in a piss poor mood and dont feel like it.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Ok so based on that Call of Duty commercial I have written script. Now it is not quite finished yet (running it through my script editor currently) Essentially I want to bring the in game experience to life. AKA Show person join a lobby. Have some people yell obscenities at each other and then end up on the same team. I want to have noobtoobs. Then have some war scene making fun of the perks. I.E. Show someone with hardline and scavenger just tearing through ammo, a guy using hardened getting...hardened before the match and one of his team mates quitting, and last but not least a guy who is using Last Stand but doesn't have the pro version so he is forced to lay there waiting for someone...in much pain.

That is all I am revealing for now. This all may be cut out just for the last little bit. Because I hate last stand (yet love it at the same time because it is good for those pesky campers...)

Sunday, February 13, 2011

I have decided to make a return to the blogging scene. Why? Simply put, I want money but I don't want a real job. HA. So now I come to you today with more video game knowledge than you last seen me. As well as some more motivation to blog and check up on blogs. Go me right?

Today, I come to you all with probably one of the most shocking and mind taxing games I have ever had the chance to play.

Warning: Incoming Gore. If you are weak at heart, leave now.

Isaac being his bad ass self

First off, Dead Space is a survival horror action adventure scifi game. You take on the role of the engineer, Isaac Clarke, who is part of an emergency response team on board the USG Kellion. The beginning of the game starts out with a cryptic message from Isaac's girlfriend being played and The Kellion attempting to land on the Space Cracker Class USG Ishimura (if someone knows what Ishimura means, lemme know. Assuming it means something.) Unfortunately, someone doesn't know how to drive and ends up beaching your ship onto the Ishimura.

Shit. If things get any worse, Isaac might need a cigarette.

Well things do get worse. When investigating the ship for no more than about two minutes, Isaac gets locked in room and is essentially forced to watch his crew get slaughtered by these crazy looking monsters (which you find out later are called Necromorphs). When I say slaughtered that is kind of an understatement. I would have to say...they are...ripped apart. As Isaac you are like "FUUUUCK" because at this time you have no weapon. Now what the hell do you do with that? Luckily, in the next room you get a plasma cutter and if you are a smart player, on the wall you will read a clue on how to kill the creatures.

If Necromorphs ever invade earth, I will an hero.

When I first started playing this, I thought this was probably the MOST messed up way to kill a creature in a video game. To remove the limbs. Head shots? Nothing. Instead when these creatures attack you, you are forced to take out both arms and legs (on higher difficulties you must take everything out. Lower, about one or two limbs). What I really liked about Dead Space was the fact that some of the monster play opossum. They will make you think they are dead until you get close. Then they just try to tear your head off like all other creatures. You will also learn quickly that there isn't as much ammo in this game as you would like. So you will often find that you are selling extra health packs or ammo to weapons you don't use to keep stocked up.

This is the view you will see most of the time.

Remember how I called this game taxing before? Well that is because the creatures are remotely smart and will use shadows and such to lure you into areas packed full of enemies or you will be upgrading your items and get attacked while you are in the menu. Just remember. In Dead Space, you are never safe. Following Resident Evil 4 and 5, if you set the controller down because you think that you are safe, you will most likely see a "You're Dead" screen. Always be on your toes unless the game is off. In which case you are safe.

Let's talk about something fun now. In the event you do die, you will be shown a clip of Isaac brutally getting killed because of your inability to heal him or because you were stupid and walked him into an instant kill creature. Here are some examples. (may want to turn your volume down. Shit was loud on my computer)

This game was crazy hard at first. But once I figured out how to kill the Necromorphs it got easy...until about midway through the game where they start throwing more Necromorphs at you. Yay. Not only will you be low on ammo, but you will be forced to make decisions like "do I fight or run?" or "Which piece of equipment should I purchase with my power node". I didn't explain it before, but power nodes are what you use to upgrade your equipment. You find a few here and there but they are hidden quite well. Always in a Blue box on the wall however, once you see them you won't miss them.

Dead Space is not a game for cheap scares either. Like most of the time you are left guessing when and how they are going to attempt to scare you next. The cheesiest by far however is the body on the floor springing to life and attacking you. This happens a few times but luckily they don't over use it. Which is good.

Overall
Dead Space is a game you just have to experience for yourself. If you loved the psychological aspects of Silent Hill and the action of Resident Evil 4 and the scares of say...Fatal Frame, you will love Dead Space. To be honest, after playing this game it quickly shot up into my top 5 games. This game is not for the faint of heart however. There are many scenes with decapitation, dismemberment and other such violent imagery. The only thing that could make this game better? Actual boobs. None of that 3-d stuff (I am looking at you God of War) I have to say I give this game an 8.9 just because at times controlling Isaac felt slightly clunky. Lots of violence, a good plot to keep you asking "what the hell is going on here", and psychological thrills. If that doesn't sound like a good time to you, then you probably hate America.

Expect a review of the Second Game and the iPhone version of the game as well once I play and complete both.